Speech Therapy
Speech Therapy
Riverwood Healthcare offers a variety of speech-language pathology services to prevent, assess, diagnose, and treat speech, language, social communication, voice, cognitive-communication, and swallowing disorders in children and adults.
Speech therapy can help adult patients affected by stroke, brain injury, dementia, swallowing difficulties, head/neck cancer, or vocal abuse/illness. However, patients with diseases such as Parkinson’s, Alzheimer’s, multiple sclerosis, and ALS can benefit too.
Speech-language pathology therapy services are available in Aitkin. For an appointment, call Riverwood’s Therapy Services department at 218-927-5580.
Other considerations for speech therapy include:
– Cognitive communication disorders (memory and attention deficits, dementia)
– Dysarthria (muscular weakness, slurred or very soft speech)
– Dysphagia (difficulty chewing or swallowing)
– Aphasia (difficulty with language or word finding after injury or stroke)
– Pediatric speech and language disorders (articulation, autism, social skill deficits, stuttering, language disorders)
– Voice disorders caused by illness, surgery, or misuse (vocal hoarseness, difficulty projecting voice)
– Augmentative alternative communication (supports to aid communication)
– LSVT LOUD (improves vocal loudness for patients with Parkinson’s)
Speech therapy can help adult patients affected by stroke, brain injury, dementia, swallowing difficulties, head/neck cancer, or vocal abuse/illness. However, patients with diseases such as Parkinson’s, Alzheimer’s, multiple sclerosis, and ALS can benefit too.
Speech-language pathology therapy services are available in Aitkin. For an appointment, call Riverwood’s Therapy Services department at 218-927-5580.
Other considerations for speech therapy include:
– Cognitive communication disorders (memory and attention deficits, dementia)
– Dysarthria (muscular weakness, slurred or very soft speech)
– Dysphagia (difficulty chewing or swallowing)
– Aphasia (difficulty with language or word finding after injury or stroke)
– Pediatric speech and language disorders (articulation, autism, social skill deficits, stuttering, language disorders)
– Voice disorders caused by illness, surgery, or misuse (vocal hoarseness, difficulty projecting voice)
– Augmentative alternative communication (supports to aid communication)
– LSVT LOUD (improves vocal loudness for patients with Parkinson’s)
Pediatric Care
Pediatric speech therapy helps children communicate more effectively in their everyday lives, reduces frustration, and empowers parents and caregivers to help their child.
We can evaluate and treat speech sound disorders, language disorders, delayed speech/language development, autism, stuttering, voice, cognition, and feeding issues that stem from oral motor deficits.
We design a customized therapy plan that fits your child’s needs. Treatment is child-and family-centered and focuses on improving communication and engagement in the home, community, and school environments. If your child is having difficulty communicating with others, we can help.
Amanda Bostrom, MS, CCC/SLP, is an experienced speech-language pathologist with expertise in therapy for children as well as adults.
We can evaluate and treat speech sound disorders, language disorders, delayed speech/language development, autism, stuttering, voice, cognition, and feeding issues that stem from oral motor deficits.
We design a customized therapy plan that fits your child’s needs. Treatment is child-and family-centered and focuses on improving communication and engagement in the home, community, and school environments. If your child is having difficulty communicating with others, we can help.
Amanda Bostrom, MS, CCC/SLP, is an experienced speech-language pathologist with expertise in therapy for children as well as adults.
Our Speech Therapist
From diagnosing speech and language difficulties to creating personalized treatment plans, our speech therapy team helps patients of all ages communicate more effectively, enhancing both their independence and quality of life.
REAL PATIENTS. REAL STORIES.
Amanda has helped John progress so much
John, age 4, is nonverbal and may never talk, but speech therapy at Riverwood is teaching him how to communicate. Diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder and syngap, which causes intellectual disabilities, seizures, and developmental delays, John has faced significant challenges. “My husband, Jeff, and I had to teach John how to do everything since he was a baby,” Colby explained. “In addition to being unable to talk, he has weak muscles, and when he fell, he didn’t know how to land or put his arms out to break his fall. We had to teach him how to chew his food and many other daily living tasks.” John uses limited sign language to communicate but struggles due to a lack of fine motor coordination. He is learning to use an augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) device with Amanda Rumpca, a speech-language pathologist at Riverwood with expertise in pediatric care. “AAC is so broad, and the tools therapists use are highly individualized,” Amanda explained. “We started working on pre-communication skills, such as making eye contact and taking turns during activities. Many children with autism need to be taught these skills because they don’t learn them naturally.” John made tremendous progress, leading to the trial of a speech-generating device with a communication program called LAMP Words for Life. “During the trial, we noticed a decrease in frustration and aggression because John could communicate more effectively,” Amanda noted. “We are so excited to finally get an AAC device for John at home,” Colby added. “He’ll have so much less anxiety with a tool that works for him. Amanda has helped John progress so much; he’s learning to use the device to express his needs instead of acting out.” Colby and Jeff feel blessed to have found pediatric therapy for John at Riverwood. When Riverwood’s new Therapy Services department opens this fall, with a pediatric gym and treatment rooms, John will also begin occupational and physical therapy.
She's always willing to listen and advise us.
A local family is grateful for the therapists and providers specializing in pediatric care at Riverwood. With a son, Josh, age 2, diagnosed with Down syndrome, they know he will need extensive medical care and therapy in the coming years. “Right now, Josh is getting speech therapy,” said his mother, Melody. “We know he’ll need occupational and physical therapy down the road. We started therapy for him in Brainerd but switched to Riverwood last year when that program closed. It’s great to be closer to home and have access to therapists skilled in treating children.” Amanda Rumpca, a speech-language pathologist at Riverwood, specializes in pediatric care and loves working with children and families. She began treating Josh in September 2017. “Josh is such a fun patient!” Amanda said. “He brightens everyone’s day with his smile and personality. We’ve been working on increasing his expressive communication using verbal language and sign language. He has made great progress and is saying many new words!” Amanda praised the family’s involvement: “Josh’s family has been wonderful to work with. They are always willing to practice at home. Josh’s older brother often comes to our therapy sessions and helps motivate him.” Melody appreciates Amanda's patience and kindness. “Even when Josh is having a bad day, Amanda helps him with his speech,” she said. “His speech is still a little delayed, but he’s talking a lot more now.” The family’s daughter, Elaina, age 1, also benefited from Riverwood’s pediatric expertise. She had torticollis, a condition causing her head to tilt to one side. “The occupational therapist showed me how to position Elaina to loosen her neck muscles,” Melody explained. “She taught me exercises to do at home, and Elaina’s neck muscles have improved with no more issues.” Melody credits her children’s primary care provider at Riverwood as very kid-friendly and responsive. “Nurse Practitioner Lisa Gerhart is wonderful,” she said. “She’s always willing to listen and advise me on the healthcare issues that come up for my kids.”
The RIverwood rehab staff was amazing!
Thanks to speech therapy at Riverwood, Logan and Sam Hanson are on the road to better communication. Fluid build-up from chronic ear infections caused temporary hearing loss at a critical time when they were learning to talk. “Logan had to have two sets of ear tubes,” explained his mother, Laurie Hanson. “We started speech therapy for him when he was 3 years old. The Riverwood Rehab staff was amazing. I had twin babies at the time and had to bring them with me to Logan’s therapy appointments. The Rehab receptionist, Angie Kuppich, was always willing to hold one kid when another was crying. Everyone was so friendly, supportive and accommodating.” Laurie added: “When Logan started school, he continued to get speech therapy help at the school, but he was able to progress by leaps and bounds because of the care at Riverwood.” Sam required ear tubes as well and was not hearing clearly as a toddler. At age 3, he began weekly speech therapy sessions in May 2018. “Sam sees Amanda Rumpca for speech therapy and he loves coming to each appointment,” Laurie said. “She uses techniques that combine play with learning, such as speaking into a plastic tube so he can hear his voice.” Amanda Rumpca, speech-language pathologist, commented: “Sam always comes ready and excited for speech therapy. We work hard on speech sounds during sessions but also have a lot of fun! His mother, Laurie, has been wonderful at following through with the home program and practicing sounds at home, which has contributed to the progress we’ve seen.” Amanda enjoys working with pediatric patients to help them communicate more effectively. She added: “Children with speech and language delays often become frustrated when they are unable to communicate. I enjoy collaborating with the families of my patients to identify goals and to create a unique treatment plan to help reach these goals. I try to make therapy fun by targeting goals in the context of play. I want my patients to enjoy coming to speech therapy and to leave feeling proud of the work they’ve done.”